The Snowstorm
by Mrs. Gamgee
Summary: Frodo gets lost in a snowstorm and Sam goes to look for him. But what happens when they both become lost? No intended slash.
1. The Absent-Minded Wanderer

Disclaimer: Tolkien owns the Hobbits, not me. Of course if I did own them.well, we won't go there! *VBEG*  
  
Story Notes: This is my second attempt at a Lord of the Rings story. All these "chapters" are very short. NO INTENDED SLASH! I know it's bound to come up, so I thought I'd nip it in the bud. This story is no more slashy than the books. If you want to take it as Slash for some reason, that's up to you. It was not written as such.  
  
Feedback: PLEASE, PLEASE give feedback! I would very much enjoy a deep, thoughtful commentary, but a simple "I enjoyed it!" would be appreciated too!  
  
Chapter 1: The Absent-Minded Wanderer  
  
*What a silly thing to do,* Frodo scolded himself silently. *Of all the times to go walking in an unfamiliar area!*  
  
Bilbo had been gone for a few weeks now, and it was just starting to sink in that Frodo might never see him again. He had gone from room to room in Bag End, trying to find something to distract his thoughts, but everything reminded him of Bilbo. He had to get away before it drove him mad. It had been lightly snowing when Frodo had left Bag End. He had bumped into Sam on the road, and his friend had offered to walk with him. Frodo had wanted to accept, but all he could think of was how Sam loved to listen to Bilbo's stories.  
  
Frodo, having gone into the woods, had taken a path through it that he couldn't remember taking before. The snow started coming down harder, but Frodo barely noticed. Later, upon reflecting on the choices he made, Frodo admitted to himself that he should have turned back when it started to snow harder still, but at the time he hadn't been thinking straight.  
  
Frodo walked down the path until he spotted on the left through the swirling snow, not far away, a wide frozen stream with a log across it. The snow was really coming down now, but the unfamiliarity of the other side of the stream fascinated the hobbit. Frodo's mind was no longer clear. He was so distressed by his loss that his thoughts were completely jumbled up, but one strong feeling burned inside him. The desire to forget, and thereby lose his pain.  
  
Frodo crossed the stream by way of the log and wandered aimlessly for a short time before sitting down on a large, flat rock. He sighed and looked around him. He could barely see through the snow, and he realized how cold he was. He stood up and squinted, searching for a sign of the stream he had crossed. It did lie in that direction.didn't it? 


	2. A Servant's Intuition

Chapter 2: A Servant's Intuition  
  
Sam knocked on the door again, harder this time. After a few seconds that felt like hours, Sam finally opened the door to Bag End. He was sure Frodo wouldn't mind if he just came in since he spent a lot of his time there anyway. Sam couldn't explain exactly why he had rushed out into the snow storm-and against his Gaffer's wishes-with a horrible fear for Frodo's safety. All he knew was that he had seen his master leave his home looking distressed and never saw him return. Of course, Sam hadn't been in a position to see Frodo return if he had, so his fear was completely irrational.  
  
But Frodo hadn't answered his door.  
  
Sam went through the eerily quiet hobbit hole calling his master's name, but there was no reply. At last, when Sam was sure Bag End was empty, he headed out into the storm in the direction his master had gone. 


	3. Deductive Reasoning

Chapter 3: Deductive Reasoning  
  
Sam tapped his foot impatiently. He was wasting precious time here. There were three paths leading into the woods, and he had to decide which to take. There was one that he and Frodo often took together. Since Frodo hadn't wished for his company, Sam concluded that that path probably wasn't the right one. There was another that Frodo took with Bilbo a lot. Sam shook his head at that one. It seemed to him that Bilbo was probably what his master wanted to put from his mind for a while. Sam chose the third path.  
  
"Mr. Frodo!" he called as he went down the path, pushing against the icy wind. There was no response, but Sam kept going. And going. And going. He went down the path, calling into the torrent of snow, until he could hardly feel his feet because they were so numb. Then finally, when he thought he could take no more, he spotted on his left a log sitting across a wide frozen stream. Without thinking, Sam began to cross it. He was more than halfway across when he felt the log begin to give beneath him. It was not as strong as it appeared. Sam desperately jumped the rest of the way to the other side, but the pressure he applied to the log before his desperate leap caused it to break.  
  
There would be no getting back that way. 


	4. No Place I'd Rather Be

Chapter 4: "No Place I'd Rather Be"  
  
Frodo had been sitting on the stone, lost, alone, and freezing, for what seemed like hours. He sat hugging his knees to his chest, but it didn't make him any warmer. He longed to just lie down and close his eyes, but he had been afraid he might never wake up. Now, however, he was thinking of giving in.  
  
Then he heard it.  
  
Frodo heard a sound that was more beautiful to his ears than any sound in all of Middle Earth. He no longer wished to bury himself in the deathly cold snow and sleep. He wanted to be awake and see the owner of the voice.  
  
"Mr. Frodo!"  
  
"I'm here, Sam!" Frodo called in a weak voice.  
  
He was afraid that his friend wouldn't be able to hear his feeble cry, but somehow Sam did. Soon Frodo saw through the thick, swirling snow a head of sandy curls bent against the icy wind. Frodo smiled, overjoyed at the sight of his friend.  
  
"Sam!" Frodo said.  
  
"Why master! Your face has gone blue in this cold!" exclaimed Sam, whose own nose and cheeks stung from the biting cold.  
  
Frodo didn't reply, but shivered and brought his knees closer to his chest. Sam sat on the rock beside Frodo and examined him. He had grown thin and weak in his sorrow since Bilbo left, and here in this storm he looked even thinner and more helpless. Frodo wouldn't last much longer.  
  
"I'm at a bit of a loss at what to do, Mr. Frodo," Sam admitted. "That log that was over the stream broke."  
  
Frodo leaned against Sam's shoulder. "I'm so cold, Sam," he said quietly. "My hands..."  
  
Sam took Frodo's hands and placed them together, palm to palm, then held them together with his own thicker, tanner hands. He kissed his master's frozen fingers.  
  
"We'll get through this, master," Sam said encouragingly. "You'll see."  
  
Frodo's wide blue eyes showed nothing but trust as he looked at Sam. "If you say we will, Sam, I know it's true."  
  
Sam gave Frodo a half-smile before his master's head returned to his shoulder. He was now twice as determined to find a way out of their situation. He had to think. Sam had been here before, but that had been a while ago. He searched his memory for something helpful. After a minute or so he remembered something.  
  
"Mr. Frodo!" he exclaimed. "There's a tree around here somewhere. A hollow tree that we can take shelter in! I think it's that one over there, but I can't be sure in this storm. We may as well go have a look." Sam stood up, still holding Frodo's hands. "Come on, Mr. Frodo. Up you get."  
  
Frodo looked pitifully up at Sam. "I think my feet have frozen into the ground," he said.  
  
"It's all right, master," Sam said comfortingly. "I'm sure they're not really frozen, but I'll lift you. Just get a good hold on my neck there. That's it. It's all right."  
  
Carrying Frodo in his arms, Sam trudged over to what he thought looked like the hollow tree. He had been correct. There was a good-sized hole in the side of the tree that the hobbits could crawl into.  
  
"Here we are, master."  
  
"Can we both fit in there, Sam?" Frodo asked.  
  
Sam frowned for a moment while he examined it, then said, "Yes, there is a way. I'll have to set you down for a moment."  
  
Sam put Frodo down beside the opening, then crawled in. He sat cross-legged inside the tree, then called for Frodo to join him.  
  
"Come, Mr. Frodo! Here, take my hand. That's it." Sam helped Frodo inside and gently pulled him onto his lap. Frodo instinctively curled up against Sam's chest, seeking what warmth he could. Sam wrapped his arms around Frodo and held him close to help warm him.  
  
"We're out of the wind now, master," Sam said soothingly. "We'll be all right."  
  
Frodo looked up at Sam. His face was still a deathly shade. Sam looked at him with concern. "We'll be all right," he repeated. He held his master's face in both hands and stroked his cheeks with his thumbs in an attempt to bring some life back into them. Frodo turned his piercing blue gaze on Sam and smiled at his concerned friend. "Dear Sam. I'm glad you're with me."  
  
Sam smiled in return and kissed Frodo's forehead. "There's no place I'd rather be."  
  
Frodo smiled, pleasantly surprised. In the midst of all the bitter cold, he had discovered a source of real warmth. "Why Sam! Your lips are warm!"  
  
Sam licked his lips again and pressed an icy finger to his mouth. "Bless me, but they do! They seem to be the only part."  
  
He kissed Frodo's forehead again, then kissed his icy nose.  
  
Frodo smiled at the warmth. "Sam, you're a marvel! I believe you'd do anything to keep me safe."  
  
"That I would, Mr. Frodo," Sam returned. He wrapped his arms around his master again and held him to his chest. "Sleep now, master dear. Your Sam is here." 


	5. A Successful Search

Chapter 5: A Successful Search  
  
"Merry, look here!" Pippin exclaimed. He pointed to a broken log that used to extend over a stream. "What do you suppose did that?"  
  
"That log wasn't terribly strong," Merry said. "It could hold my weight, but if someone heavier was to cross it--"  
  
"Sam!" Pippin exclaimed.  
  
"Come on, there's a narrower part down there," Merry said.  
  
The two hobbits crossed the stream, then went back to the spot where the broken log lay. They studied the ground for a few minutes, searching for clues. Then Merry found something.  
  
"Here!" Merry cried. "Pip, look what I've found! Hobbit tracks!"  
  
Merry and Pippin followed the tracks to the rock Frodo and Sam had sat on, and from there to the hollow tree. There they found Frodo and Sam sleeping peacefully together. Frodo was still wrapped in Sam's protective arms.  
  
"See here, Pip!" Merry said loudly. "Two little hobbits living wild in the forest!"  
  
"Oooh, Merry!" Pippin exclaimed, catching on to the joke. "Do you suppose we could tame them and keep them as pets?"  
  
Sam opened his eyes at this and scowled at the two trouble making hobbits, displeased at the idea of being treated like an animal, even if they were only joking.  
  
"I don't know, Pip," Merry said. "They are wild, after all. And vicious too, by the looks of them. See the mean gleam in that one's eye?"  
  
Frodo, who was awake by this time, chuckled softly at the thought of Sam mean. Sam was a gentle soul.  
  
"This here is a particularly ugly breed of wild-hobbit," Merry continued matter-of-factly, pointing to Frodo.  
  
Even gentle souls, Frodo reminded himself, have things that set them off, and Merry and just pressed Sam's defensive buttons.  
  
"Here!" Sam exclaimed, casting a disapproving glare at the mischievous Brandybuck. "That's not funny!"  
  
"It wasn't meant as a joke," Merry said coolly.  
  
"Just look at it!" Pippin added, wrinkling his nose at Frodo.  
  
That was too much for Sam. His eyes widened and he sat up perfectly straight. "How dare you say such a thing about Mr. Frodo!"  
  
Merry and Pippin laughed. "We were just kidding, Sam!" Pippin told him. "Frodo knows that, don't you, cousin?"  
  
"Yes, Pippin, I know. Sam, lad, don't squeeze me quite so hard."  
  
"Sorry, Mr. Frodo." Sam blushed. "Can we get out of this tree now?"  
  
"Yes, let's," Frodo agreed. "You'll come with me to Bag End, won't you Sam? I'd like to talk with you about some things..." He meant, of course, Bilbo, who was still very much on his mind.  
  
"Of course, Mr. Frodo."  
  
"I'm looking forward to breakfast," Frodo added. "I'll do the cooking today if you like. You deserve a break."  
  
"Now, Mr. Frodo," Sam said. "You know how much I enjoy preparing your meals. You wouldn't want to take that away from me, would you?"  
  
"Indeed not, dear Sam. I just thought I'd ask."  
  
"I'll make you the best breakfast you ever had, Mr. Frodo," Sam promised as he helped Frodo off his lap.  
  
Merry and Pippin looked at each other, then turned to Sam.  
  
"Let us help you, Sam!" they said, pulling him out of the tree.  
  
"Is there anything else we can do for you, Sam?" Pippin asked.  
  
Sam shook his head. "No need to butter me up, lads. You can come to breakfast too."  
  
END 


End file.
